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How Stalin and Roosevelt influenced the Federal Elections in 2017 East Germany

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  • Hälbig, Mirja C.
  • Lorenz, Jürgen R.

Abstract

Exploiting differences in occupation status in East Germany in the last days of World War II and shortly thereafter, we find that regions which - due to their occupation status - experienced a drastic supply problem caused by the influx of great numbers of refugees fleeing from the Red Army in 1945 had a disproportionate increase in AfD votes from 2013 to 2017. We conclude that the "refugee crisis" in 2015, which dominated the campaign of the federal elections in 2017 and is considered as main determinant of voting for the AfD, activated the collective memory of this long-gone historic event and thereby shaped the current political landscape.

Suggested Citation

  • Hälbig, Mirja C. & Lorenz, Jürgen R., 2019. "How Stalin and Roosevelt influenced the Federal Elections in 2017 East Germany," VfS Annual Conference 2019 (Leipzig): 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall - Democracy and Market Economy 203618, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:vfsc19:203618
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Polugodina, Maria & Grigoriadis, Theocharis, 2020. "East Prussia 2.0: Persistent regions, rising nations," Discussion Papers 2020/8, Free University Berlin, School of Business & Economics.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • N44 - Economic History - - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation - - - Europe: 1913-
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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